


The Science of It

by calmskiesfierynights



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, more characters to join as this progresses...
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2019-08-09 07:54:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16445846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calmskiesfierynights/pseuds/calmskiesfierynights
Summary: AU: Regina Mills is late to her first Molecular Biology lecture, taught by none other than Professor Swan.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Transferred from FFnet. 
> 
> Opened an Ao3 account and kind of/sort of have the feeling of wanting to write again.  
> This is an AU based off a Tumblr post I made for SQ week almost five years ago. Inspired by the great ship, and the beautiful fellow classmate I met in my Molecular Biology class... ta da!

CHAPTER 1

One could predict that the livelihood of the morning sun, and the lightening sky would be everyone's favourite part of their day. Watching the sun rise over the hills, spreading its orange glow over the colouring clouds, and extending its rays to all the waking eyes of those needing to start their long days.

One can also predict that this was the exact same reason Emma Swan truly hated mornings.

Even though it was an unreal place, she regretted buying the fabulous condominium she had purchased only a few months after finishing her doctorate. The promising career and chance of a ten-year position at her alumni university gave her the ability and means to afford the place.

_"You are going to just love all the natural lighting Ms. Swan." Her realtor had told her, and she only remembers this because she tried to bite back the retort of correcting the 'Miss' with the more informative and suiting word 'Doctor'._

Though Emma never really fit in with her arrogant fellow colleagues, so she never corrected anyone for the mistake and always gave them the time of day.

Very uncharacteristic for a professor, especially in her field.

The condo actually was a dream-like buy, and Emma had spent many hours (and most of her savings) decorating the place in order to set roots down in her first real home.

Unfortunately, all good things are never what they seem, even with the picturesque perfection they are presented with.

She always preferred the beauty of the setting sun, and moving into this particular place two years ago accurately explained the reason as to why she did. In the morning, every morning in fact, all that magical 'natural lighting' of the condo acted as the best alarm clock possible. The sun's rays hit Emma in the eyes every time, and woke her up from her peaceful slumber. She never found herself being able to fall asleep before midnight, due to her heavy workload, so sleeping for more than six or seven hours a night was entirely out of the question.

Just like this morning.

 _Fuck me._ Emma thought to herself as she pulled a white pillow over her head and buried her nose into her comfy mattress.  _Just five more minutes Mr. Sun, that's all I'm asking for bud._

Turning her cheek to the side, Emma looked at her clock and saw it was almost seven.

_Shit._

Shoving off the covers rather ungracefully, Emma yawned and stretched on the side of her bed, as she shook out her light brown curls and felt their greasy roots.

_Time for a shower Swan._

Emma didn't even bother putting on her slippers, as she felt the flannel pajama bottoms were long enough to slide on to the bathroom. She felt her feet dragging along beside her as she practically slumped over to her shower and attempted to successfully squint out the light to be able to turn on the tap. These same flannel bottoms matched her button up shirt, both which screamed "I'm single, sleep alone, and am terribly comfortable doing so".

Once finally in the shower, she felt her muscles loosening beneath the warm water that spilled over her exhausted form. After a few days of evading the task, Emma doused her darker tresses in shampoo and groaned pleasurably at the fruity scent.

It wasn't that she  _hated_ her darker brown hair at all. In fact, Emma received multiple compliments almost hours after the dye job, most saying that the tone brought out the true green in her eyes. Not surprisingly, her close friend Tink was the first to make the most outlandish of descriptive comments.

_"You kind of look like a woodland fairy now."_

_"What the actual fuck Tink?" Emma had said, choking on her food mid-chuckle. "Do they have those things in Australia, or is that Evolutionary Biology seminar finally getting the best of you?"_

_"Har-Har Swan." Tink had replied with pure sarcasm. "No seriously, you kind of now look like that elf from Lord of the Rings!"_

_"Are you saying I have pointy ears?" Emma had joked._

_"Personally I had hoped someone would have already told you, but I guess I have to be the bearer of bad news." The girl's down under voice had come out with the hilarious jab._

No, Emma definitely loved the brown colour. Change was something that never bothered Emma.

She just missed her bright blonde hair so much, that even the showering schedule changed once the dye job really set into her life. For example, Emma came down to the conclusion that blondes can hide their greasy hair with much more skill than brunettes.

 _I should probably not share my findings with others._ Emma considered to herself whilst brushing out her damp locks in the foggy, wet mirror.  _Students will start doubting my hygiene._

After blow-drying her hair, and setting her annoying bangs on top of her forehead, the thirty-two-year-old stared back into the mirror.

_First day of classes, might as well put some makeup on._

Finding herself finally completely presentable for the day ahead, Emma slipped into some comfortable slacks and a button-up violet blouse. Before packing up her laptop and getting ready to leave before 7:45, Emma took a look at her schedule for the day.

She was only teaching one subject this semester, and she was very delighted that the department gave her the Molecular Biology class on a bit of a whim. Dr. Banks had taught Molecular Biology for third year for almost twenty years, and his retirement was completely unexpected. Partly because he held a monopoly on the class, and then partly because he spent the last ten years of his career refusing to allow the use of laptops and Smart Boards in his classroom. Her preferred the classic use of chalkboards – the messy kind.

 _In with the old, out with the new._ Emma thought to herself as she saved her "Introduction to Molecular Biology" PowerPoint to her hard drive and packed up her briefcase.

Once locking up her condo and feeling the outside air, Emma immediately regretted the decision concerning pants. Canada may have one of the most coldest and diverse climates in the world, but the month of September was just a giant question mark and toss up when it came to picking clothes for the day. The cool, morning air already felt heavy with the impending humidity that threatened sweat patches on her purple blouse and a severely sticky fringe. Luckily, all her work was in one building, and she only needed to drop stuff off at her office today because after class she was needed in one of the labs to meet and greet her new teaching assistants.

Not that this was something she was actually looking forward to.

The BioScience building was located on the same side of campus that was minutes away from Emma's lavish condominium, and the trek barely took ten minutes in the summer and warmer months. North American winters held a historical tendency of its own volition, and Emma felt the true wrath one day last year. Minutes before an eight-thirty lecture, Emma was almost run over by a snow plow, and forced to jumped head first into a snow bank to avoid the collision.

She cheated pain though, and was happy that nothing was  _physically_ broken, but her dignity was another story. Emma's dear friend Ruby from the History department had watched the entire thing go down from her office in the building above, only to tape the leap on her iPhone and send it to all of their closest friends and colleagues.

 _That's what I get for setting her up with my ex on a blind date._ Emma laughed to herself and opened up the door to the BioScience building upon reaching it.

"Hey! Hold the door Em!" A high, shrill voice rang behind her. Blonde hair peaked out from under a thick green headband, and Emma immediately felt a smile spread across her face.

"Tink!" Emma exclaimed, placing her briefcase down at her side and tossing her arms around her shorter friend in the doorway. "It is so good to see you!"

"You too! It really is good to be back." Tink said into her ear, undoing herself from Emma's death grip of an embrace. "I see the summer did not do much for your tan then, did it Swan?"

Emma rolled her eyes and felt her shoulders droop. "Thank you for pointing that out."

"You're welcome." The quirky blonde said with a beam.

"I didn't mean that."

"I know." Tink said slyly with a wink. "But I know how much you missed me, so I'll let it slide this time."

"How is everything back home?" Emma asked her friend as they started to walk upstairs towards their offices after passing the lobby.

"S'alright I guess." Tink shrugged. "Ma and Pa want to know when you are coming down to visit them again. They miss their exchange-child."

Emma laughed at the title. She had met Tink during her Master's degree when she went on exchange to Australia and lived with her in a 'shabby, dung-filled flat' as her friend had once called it. Every Sunday though, the two starving students would make their way to the Gold Coast and have dinner with Tink's parents, filling up for the entire week ahead.

After a few months, her parents began to call Emma Swan their 'exchange-daughter' or 'Tink's missing twin' and Emma never bothered correcting them. It gave Emma the first real sense of what family is all about.

Besides, family was something Emma never had the luxury of getting up until that time.

Finding themselves inseparable at the hip, and Emma primarily growing inconceivably attached to someone in her life, Tink surprised her by joining her for their degree in Canada for her very own PhD.

Exactly where Emma was going to go for hers.

They spent the four years getting their doctorates together in Biology, and formed a sisterly bond that not even genetics itself could testify to.

Or the local bar that welcomed the girls each Friday night after their week of pure hell, even to this day.

"I'll have to go down next summer then, but man the students over this one that just pasted kept me so stupidly busy." Emma replied finally, unlocking her office and letting Tink come in to sit down for a coffee. "I had to buy my own coffee machine just to keep up with all the crap that I had to correct with all the labs and testing going badly each time." Emma said irritably, indicating to the new machine that sat on the table next to her desk that she began to brew.

"Their all fucking idiots, that's why." Tink said sharply, sitting herself down on Emma's chair across from her desk. "This is what the department gets for hiring inexperienced undergraduates with no desire in the field and all just want to go to flipping Med School."

Emma did not disagree, but poured two cups of the streaming dark liquid for Tink and herself. "I just want to meet some undergrads this year with  _real_  potential, and not have the department needing to pick them out for me to take under my wing over the four summer months." Emma said with interesting determination, which made Tink's head tilt as they both rose to leave for their lectures. "They have to be cool too, you know? Like be in a band in their spare time or do taxidermy."

Tink scoffed. "Shame we can't just hire more Masters students."

Emma reconsidered her collegue's statement. "Most of them are just as presumptuous though, let's be honest."

"You mean pompous love."

Emma giggled. "Shame we can't just hire really hot undergrads."

"If it were up to you Emma, the entire lab would hold interviews based on cup size." Tink said with a gleeful wink.

"Shut up Virginia." Emma teased, knowing her friend to not be telling anything less than the truth.

Using her given name though, that was an unforgivable act in itself.

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU BLOODY JUST CALLED ME THAT SWAN!" Tink yelled, and could be heard continuously shouting insults as Emma scurried out of her office, freshly brewed mug and lab coat in hand, and walked to her lecture hall.

As the blaring cries of her alarm clock rang once again, Regina slammed her hand down on the hard snooze button, trying to silence its loud rings. Tossing her thick, fallen curls out of her face, Regina groaned loudly once more and let her sore hand fall back beside her resting head.

Regina had once considered herself a definite morning person. Actually, she had once thought she was an all-day person. For years, her mother Cora had instilled a disciplined schedule that included early morning exercise and healthy sleeping habits, all for the eventual gain of a 'beneficial life in her later future'.

All of this training and etiquette still stuck with her even as she turned 20 in February, and began her third year as an undergraduate student today.

The sleeping however was completely driven by the fact that she spent almost every night either studying until the wee hours of the morning, or dancing around her apartment to ABBA with her amazing roommate Kathryn, whilst having girl talks.

Friends were not a luxury that Cora Mills allowed her young daughter to have when she was in school, as they were dubbed to be 'deceiving and distracting' to her young, once vulnerable child.

_"You do not need them Regina." Mother had once told her, almost twelve years ago when Regina was not allowed to invite any of her classmates to celebrate her eighth birthday with her and all the older people her parents invited._

_"But why Mommy?" Regina had asked, questioning so evident in her dark chocolate eyes._

_"Friends always leave you." Cora said sternly. "Family is the only thing we know for certain."_

_Regina's eyes dropped her stare intently at her feet, finding interest in the pattern of the rug._

_Cora yanked on her daughters arm, and then scolded her. "What have I told you Regina about not looking people in the eyes when they are speaking to you!" Her mother's grip on her forearm had tightened, and Regina recalled crying out in pain, only to be silenced with a sharp, open-handed slap to her left cheek._

_"Silence Regina." Cora spat harshly, causing the child to quiet immediately, and allow her mother to readjust her hair and dress from the sniveling tears that invisibly painted her cheekbones._

After that particular incident, Regina never questioned her mother again, and thankfully never received the same harsh blow. Regina knew it was from her obedience, and partly because her father Henry noticed the blue bruise the next morning at breakfast with his daughter. Her father never legitimately stood up for his daughter in front of his fearful wife, but seeing the blackened-blue that painted Regina's face must have  _really_  ticked him off.

Wishing to rid her thoughts of her overbearing parents whilst trying to fall asleep, Regina tried to fall back into a harmless slumber for a few moments longer, only to be interrupted by the rapid banging on her bedroom door.

"Regina, wake up sleepy head!" Her roommate's voice rang from the other side. "Do you even know what time it is?"

Regina groaned, then sat up in her bed, ignoring her clock on the bedside table. "Ugh, maybe time for you to stop drinking so much coffee this early Kathryn?" Regina shouted at the intrusion, as she ran her hands through her unruly thick curls. "And maybe time for you to stop banging on my door perhaps?"

Kathryn opened the door with a slam, her blonde hair streaked with fluorescent pink undertones peaking in the opening of the door, and then fully emerging. "Dumbass, it's almost eight. No time for you to have some coffee this morning, guess that leaves it all for me."

Regina jumped out of her bed at once, throwing her cerulean duvet off of her figure. She looked at her clock that read exactly 8:14.

"Oops, my bad, I thought it was before eight." Kathryn teased into her oatmeal bowl. "Hurry up and throw a bra on, I can't imagine the infamous Regina Mills being late to her first class of the year."

Regina heard her bedroom door shut and tripped over her schoolbag when trying to reach her dresser. Desperately yanking open the second drawer, Regina grabbed the first shirt she saw and tossed it onto her bed. Opening the fourth drawer with just as much might, Regina grabbed a pair of jeans and threw them on the bed right beside her chosen shirt.

With as much speed as Regina could muster, she yanked off her tank top from sleep and fell to the floor, remembering the bra her roommate so deftly recommended.

 _She's so freaking lucky she's an A cup sometimes,_ Regina thought as she placed the white lacey bra over her plump bosom.  _What I'd give to go one day without the worry…_

Regina put on her tank that she slept in, the simple black tank, before buttoning up her white blouse and settling herself in a pair of rather form-fitting jeans - a pair Cora would burn if ever seeing her daughter in. Regina then scurried over to her bathroom and took a good solid look in the mirror after quickly, but deftly brushing her perfect white teeth.

 _No makeup today then._ Regina knew her golden skin hardly needed any whatsoever, and her mother was not here to reprimand her into looking prettier with some heavy eye makeup.

 _Well, my hair has definitely seen some better days,_ she thought grimly, knowing that a ponytail would have to suffice for her first day of classes considering showering ten minutes before class was no longer an option. She securely bound her hair at the base of her neck, not even bothering to antagonize her thick Latin curls that her father's side of the family so willingly blessed her with by actually  _brushing_  them out.

Regina then speedily grabbed her bag out of her room, and before making it to her door, she heard her roommate call out to her.

"Your mom called by the way." Kathryn said without any interest of emotion. "Wants us to come up to Montreal for Thanksgiving."

Regina's teeth clenched, knowing her mother's plan all too well for that forsaken holiday was to ensnare Kathryn's family.

Primarily, when her mother found out about her roommate during Regina's first year at university, Cora was  _outraged_  at the notion that her child was required to share residence with another girl. Upon finally meeting Kathryn though, Cora Mills was exuberantly  _delighted_  to hear about how wealthy Kathryn's family was, especially considering they owned a large portion of stock in gold.

_"You may keep this Kathryn girl as your friend Regina." Mother had told her. "She will be very beneficial to you in finding a suitable man for the future."_

_Regina nodded, overtly enthusiastic at the idea of finally being permitted to have a friend. "Yes mother, of course." She falsely praised the older woman, knowing how to deliberately manipulate Cora Mills ever since she grew into her teenage years and began to fight against the obedience._

The brunette shrugged by the frame of their apartment's entrance, shoving her feet into her blue pair of Toms and readjusting the straps on her bag. "We don't need to go if you aren't up for it Kat."

Kathryn laughed. "But I want to dye my hair more and see the look on your mom's face when she sees I added more colour! Maybe blue next time!"

Regina giggled. The look on Cora Mills' face when she saw Kathryn's pink hair was forever imprinted in her mind, and almost drove her to wanting to add purple highlights in her own dark curls.

Not that she'd ever dare.

"Gina," The blonde-pink haired girl started, and walked over to her roommate, shamelessly unbuttoning the white blouse and allowing the black tank to cup her chest in plain view. "Here. Now you can show up late, and that poor Banks will not know what hit him when he can just get a good look at the girls."

Regina scowled at her friend's crudeness. "Not cool Kathryn."

"I know how big of a prude you are Gina, but come on! You have so much to show off!" Kathryn practically exclaimed, and Regina shoved away her hands with a playful giggle.

"I need to go to class!" Regina scolded, tightening her ponytail and immediately remembering what she had forgotten. "Oh my goodness! My glasses!"

"In your bag, remember?" Kathryn said, pointing to the open zipper on the right side of her schoolbag. "You put them in there last night on the ride down when your parents helped you unpack last night."

 _That's probably why I am so tired,_ Regina thought.  _They didn't leave until midnight, especially after Mother had her particular words about me needing to conduct myself as a lady – and not experimentally dye my hair like Kat._

She put the lenses over her eyes, and then took a final glance at the clock.

8:26.

"Go Regina! Don't wanna be more late that necessary!" Kathryn said, pushing the brunette out the door.

Regina waved goodbye, then ran all the way out of her apartment complex to the BioScience building, praying she would not be too late for her first Molecular Biology class.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

The cool air-conditioning of the room forced a shiver to make it's way down Emma's spine, and her limbs felt the brunt of the path. With only seven awkward and uncomfortable minutes left until the lecture could start, Emma slipped her thin lab coat through the sleeves and absent-mindedly adjusted her fringe with her fingertips.

_Now I know why I wore pants._

_This lecture hall is always so fucking freezing._

Emma didn't mind being cold; she chose to study in the northern country of Canada after all. She just really preferred the warm weather of some beach or the hot desert that she traversed while spending some time in Australia.

All of that time that she should have been spent maybe studying or working on her thesis.

_I better book my ticket for next summer before I get spent spending its entirety in a lab stuck with a supervising position again._

The room began to feel a little fuller, as the door began to slam open and shut at a higher frequency as the time ticked by. Students began to filter in one by one, all finding seats within far enough distances from each other that they didn't need to interact or become forced make new friends through the uncomfortable tension. Most of them took out their laptops or notebooks, all desperately trying to pretend that they were actually doing some form of work.

_Please kids,_ Emma thought to herself with a visible smirk.  _I know half of you are either creeping Facebook, Tweeting up a storm or blogging about how much you hate that the summer finally coming to an end._

It was only the first day of classes, and this is the first scheduled slot for lectures, so Emma knew these for a fact. Not wanting to intrude, and silently sitting on her perched desk at the front of the hall, Emma sipped her hot coffee and patiently watched the seats begin to fill at a faster rate.

This was the exact moment in time in which she had expected her nerves beginning to kick in.

_Shit, not this again._

_Not this year too._

When young Emma Swan did her first public speech in middle school, she made an absolute  _ass_  of herself and used her track and field skills to run out of the classroom as quickly as her lanky legs let her. Emma never liked being the speaker, or even the center of attention for that matter, only because she never truly got the chance to be paid attention to in each of her busy "homes" over the years of her youth. With every foster home in the past, she was never the token trouble child or the one that really required any attention. Emma was always the one that stood out of all the angry kids ways and never spoke to her foster parents unless it was urgent or she felt her heart beginning to stop.

The heart-stopping-thing of course, never happening.

Much to her luck.

Each home brought a different set of rules and a very _,_ well,  _versatile_  set of parenting figures, some which were much better at the job than others. Though Emma constantly entered each household knowing better.

Nothing – not even the good families or happy dinners – lasted forever.

Emma never spoke throughout the remainder of middle school, and even into high school. She took every failing grade she could on each speech or public presentation, just to avoid them.

_I won't ever use this crap anyways –_ was exactly whatshe used to think.

It wasn't until her second year Organismal Biology class that she finally got up the nerve to correct the professor.

Under her breath primarily, but the bastard heard her, and made her repeat what she had said.

Slowly, and stuttering heavily through each syllable, Emma retold her corrected version of his statement.

Fearing the worst, the man put his pointer down and gave her wide beam, one she knew most girls in the class would spend their undergraduate years swooning over.

_"About time you started talking in this class Miss Swan." He had said, a bit of kindness echoing in his tone, but still a bit gruffly. "Keep using that voice of yours as much as you use that brain, and all of us will be learning a lot this semester."_

Emma smiled at the memory, knowing she owed so much to her mentor Dr. Booth. She had worked with him throughout her last undergraduate years, and then her Masters. He even gave his name and word as a reference for her Doctorate application. August used to jokingly confide in her that she was the only female he could truly find himself able to spend a long period of time with, without perchance strangling her.

_"That's because you definitely aren't my type Dr. Booth." She had said, in her third year of university and this being the first time she finally admitted her sexuality to someone._

_Ever._

August knew all along though, as Emma spent most of her time tutoring the cuter, not-so-brilliant girls in his class. She apparently was not very good at hiding her preference, but she did not find herself needing to after the admission, or feeling threatened by her sexuality. He was actually the one who suggested she spend a year away for her Masters, and Emma remained thankful for the suggestion to this day. After many years of schooling and teaching during her PhD, Emma's innate fear of public speaking seemed to completely dissipate, leaving only the uncertain, primary nerves in their wake.

_Tick. Tick._

The clock finally began to close in at eight-thirty, with the lecture room began to thicken with bodies, and Emma heard some definite chatter amongst her class. This was expected, as Emma hoped some of these brilliant pupils actually knew each other from previous years.

This was a third year Molecular Biology Class after all, and with only fifty-seven registered students, they better start getting to know each other and forming study groups.

By some form of miracle, or incomprehensible obedience that was unexpected by Emma, the entire classroom quieted and sat silently when the clock read exactly eight-thirty.

Emma cleared her throat, got off her seat on the table and stood up. "Guess we should get started then." Running her fingers through her bangs for a final time, and securing her lab coat around her waist, Emma walked to the middle of the podium.

"Hello everyone on this bright and beautiful morning I am sure so many of you wanted to spend this sunny day  _inside_  learning." Emma started, her voice coming out higher than normal, and her gag prompting a few giggles from the entire room.

"My name is Dr. Emma Swan, and I happen to be the new professor for this course, Molecular Biology for the third year of study."

A group that sat close to the front smiled widely, whilst Emma saw some boys in the back give each other fist-pumps.

_Oh joy, oh bliss._

"As you all may have noticed, I am not over eighty-years old and have actually resorted to using the PowerPoint presentations for my lecture today." Emma turned around to look at the projection, only to see a black screen.

_Fuck._

"Oh sorry everyone, minor technical difficulty! "She told them, deftly releasing the black lid on her projector, allowing the light to filter through and show the first slide to her presentation.

**BIO310: Introduction to Molecular Biology**

**Taught by: Dr. Emma Swan**

"There we go." She told the class, turning back to face the room.

"I'm sure you have all been absolutely  _dreading_ this class since it appeared onto your syllabus last week, but I don't want any of you to be worried. With enough effort and time, we are going to have a fun and informative semester." Emma told them with clear sarcasm. "Bet you all hear that all of the time, am I right?"

The nods and murmurs across the room proved her theory correct.

She sighed, shoulders slouching in their relaxed mode. "Look guys, this path and field you all have chosen is  _definitely_  not the easiest." She started, seeing some more nods. "But, with great power comes great responsibility." She finished, emphasis on these words with air quotations.

More laughter filled the room.

"No seriously everyone." Emma said, sobering up the crowd. "You are all the future or education, medicine and even the planet in some crazy way. You cannot slack off in this program, and I expect  _none_  of you to think this will be an easy course. It was not when I took it all those years ago."

Emma rolled her eyes at the approving nods. "Hey, come on! I'm not  _that_  old."

This provoked the loudest response, some chuckles and giggles heard from her spot at the podium, echoing and bouncing off each of the four walls.

"This early morning class every Monday and Wednesday morning can either suck or be fun. How about we make it a good time? Agreed?" Emma raised her hands in mock surrender.

"Agreed." The class chanted back to her.

"Alright then." Emma remarked with a tone of finality. She walked over the white board on her left, picking up the blue felt marker on the board's ledge. "Now, everyone tell me what they know about molecular biology."

That shut the entire class up pretty quickly.

"Come on guys, you are all some form of Biology major!" Emma pleaded, wanting some quality participation. "I'm sure you all know something –"

She was interrupted when she noticed a student having slipped into the lecture late, and trying desperately to find an unnoticeable seat amongst the sea of students.

Regina raced out of her apartment, mentally praising herself for slipping on her Toms that morning instead of her sandals that her mother had picked out for her to wear on the first day.

_"Mother, please be reasonable! I can hardly wear heels on my first day of classes." Regina alleged, trying not to antagonize Cora, but desperately trying to wean herself away from the older woman's demanding metaphorical and physical hold on her life._

_"And why not my dear?" Cora asked with her sickeningly sweet tone, packing the stilettos and strappy shoes without a second thought towards Regina's reasoning._

_"We are not permitted to wear opened toed shoes in labs Mother." Regina told her, trying to remain calm and recalling her earlier years of trained obedience._

_"You can wear them to class then."_

_"That's hardly appropriate Mother, the type of fool I would look like amongst my friends and colleagues." Regina said, a rosy blush forming in the apples of her cheeks at the thought of heels clanging to class. "The leather boots you bought me are what I honestly wear all the time, and don't you think they are all I am going to need for this year?"_

_"Leather boots aside, what kind of man is going to want his woman to wear such ugly trainers and unseemly slip-ons?" Cora bellowed, silencing Regina's questions and suggestions._

_"I –"_

_"Oh right, none." Cora finished with a hiss. "I thought I taught you better Regina, but you are slowly becoming a bigger embarrassment to your father and I with each passing year."_

_Regina's rage and emotions, all which were bottled down for the summer break, finally made themselves known again in her mind, and in the heat seeping out of her skin._

_"What can you possibly mean by that mother?"_

_"Well, is it not obvious?"_

_"I am on the Dean's List for my program, and worked tirelessly all last year to ensure my academic standing." Regina seethed. "I don't exactly see where I am going wrong?"_

_"There." Cora pointed to an invisible spot on Regina. "Right there."_

_"Right where?" Regina spun around on the spot, looking around herself sarcastically for this marker that Cora seemed convinced was the reason of Regina's demise._

_"Your attitude Regina." Cora told her with a snarky growl. "It has gone completely rotten ever since your little escapade at university."_

Regina had wanted to object, oh how desperately she wished to lash out at her mother and scream in rebellion.

Then possibly throw her end table by her bedside at Cora's head.

Unfortunately, she couldn't disagree with Cora's resolving theory as to her daughter's change. Regina knew she had changed.

Friends.

A possible self-sufficient future.

No rich husband required.

She was just thankful her father made the wonderful motion of trusting his daughter, and allowing Regina to get a degree in the first place, even if was not what Cora had wanted her to study.

Her mother pushed for business. Regina pushed for science.

Henry Mills did not push at all, just paid for Regina to do what she pleased.

_"If only you had have listened to me earlier Regina." Cora said bitterly, but trailed off with the shake of her head, pinned curls staying held in their place._

_Regina on her part said nothing, ignored her own threatening tears and gave her mother an endearing smile, so obviously surrendering to her mother's intolerable whims._

_"What shall I wear with these shoes though, mother?"_

Regina had to remain submissive, at least in her mother's eyes. If Cora genuinely saw a massive change in Regina, then she would remove her daughter from university and blame it on everything from the food additives from the local famers to Kathryn's pink hair.

Kathryn was probably most to blame actually, as was the bright streaks of decadent pink that lined her blonde hair. Actually, if Regina recalled correctly, it was Kathryn who bought her these Toms for her birthday in February.

The travel time to school did not take as long as usual, especially ever since Regina and Kathryn picked an apartment that year closer to that part of campus. Last year was their first year out of residence, and they ended up rooming with about four more other people, and it drove both Regina and Kathryn insane having to live with so many other people.

Kathryn more than Regina, particularly since she had shared a room in the place with her on-and-off boyfriend, Frederick.

Space away from each other proved to be all they needed to make their connection work, as the summer in different provinces actually made their relationship stronger.

_Thank the freaking lord,_ Regina thought to herself, upon finally reaching the door to her lecture hall's building.  _Any more two in the morning fights from them may actually have been my devastating undoing._

Upon reaching the hall, she stood outside the room's door and took a quick glance at the time on her phone.

**8:37**

Regina knew she had to go in eventually, and just hoped the door would not creak as much to make so much noise. Slowly, but gently, she eased the heavy metal door open, and slipped into the room, settling her eyes to a  _very_  full classroom.

Oddly, even with her glasses, Regina did a second take at the front of the classroom.

Instead of an elderly man with a deep admiration for chalkboards and sandals paired with flip-flops, there was a young woman in a lab coat addressing the class. Her light brown hair was pulled into a bun at the base of her neck, fringe delicately hitting above her eyes, and lean slender form completely concealed by the white coat.

_New professor this year, or substitute for Banks?_ Regina thought curiously as she tried to walk silently and remain as quiet as possible in finding an open desk.  _Semesters looking better already…_

Regina looked at the projected screen, and she read that this professor's name was Dr. Emma Swan, and she was going to be their permanent instructor for that term.

_Thank God._

_From what I have listened to so far, I can actually understand when this woman speaks._

" – I'm sure you all know something –" Regina listened to the woman speak, but heard the pause and looked up to see her professor's eyes being trained on none other that her frozen body in the middle of the second last aisle.

"Ah, there's a common sight to see, but not so much on the first day back!" Dr. Swan said, pointing to Regina's unmoving figure. A blush crept its way from her neck onto her face so quickly; she dropped her gaze hesitantly, unable to look the woman in the eyes.

Dr. Swan must have noticed her discomfort, and obviously decided not to be too harsh. ""I can remember sleeping in during my undergrad years too, so don't worry everyone." She pointed around the room with her dark felt marker. "You guys get one slide to be late."

The class murmured in minor content, knowing how ridiculously lashing most of their other professors were to the students who came late to their lecture. Regina herself could recall one of her classmates being held outside the classroom for the entire lecture, not allowed to come inside after being two minutes late.

A bit of relief flooded through her, but the reddening face remained, and she still hadn't found the courage to move from her stuck position. By this time, Regina's face must have gone beet red, but she remained rooted in her spot, awaiting the instruction of her oddly welcoming professor.

Dr. Swan gave her a small wink, before addressing her personally. "Do try to be on time for the rest of the semester though, Miss-?"

"Mills. Regina." She had finally found her voice apparently.

"Well, whenever you are ready Regina, please find a seat." Dr. Swan told her, not unkindly but with a tint of humour that caused the entire class to smile around them both.

"Closer to the front may be the best, I tried to put some effort into my hair today." Dr. Swan said, giving her a charitable thumbs up. Regina slid into the seat in the front row, beside only two other people, and felt much happier that she had elected to take this class in the first place.

Even with all the warnings coming from all of her classmates who had taken it previously.

_In with the old, out with the new I suppose._ Regina though, settling into her chair.

"Now, why don't we get back to what we started with?" Dr. Swan asked, and Regina heard the groans from behind her head, causing her to giggle and Dr. Swan to laugh.

"Wow, still on summer mode guys?" She asked the class again, and many responded with either nods or over-enthusiastic agreements.

"Gee, doesn't that really suck?" She said, mocking them with her obvious uncaring attitude. "We are beginning chapter one this morning, so break out the laptops and pencils everyone."

All fifty-something students were obviously not pleased, but Regina just took out her laptop anyways. Having already known what textbook was required, and not permitted to have much fun over the summer other than join her parents for luncheons and dinners, Regina had already read the book and made notes for each chapter.

Willingly.

The groans and unimpressed sounds coming from all ends of the room obviously made Dr. Swan comment once more.

"Considering how  _none of you_ had anything to add when I asked what you all knew about Molecular Biology, I think your objections are rather unwarranted." She started, tapping her hands on the wooden desk beside her own PowerPoint presentation. "Don't you?"

Funny enough, no one had any sounds or comments to add, but finally realized summer was over for good.

Regina suspected she was the only person in that lecture hall that was genuinely glad to be back on the grind, and really excited to ultimately begin her third year.

Especially with this class every Monday and Wednesday morning.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Today's lesson may have not scraped much of the barrel in terms of important or impertinent information, but Regina could already tell exactly how Dr. Swan was going to evaluate them on each future assignment and test.

Through her incorporation of the class's answering of questions, and their much desired participation, Dr. Emma Swan did not seem like the type of instructor who wanted her pupils to memorize each word they wrote during the lectures and regurgitate it.

It was different, because prior to that year of study, most of their professors didn't focus on the application of principles, only the general knowledge of them.

"This isn't some basic biology course everyone, and I bet that's shocking you all pretty harshly right now." Dr. Swan said assumingly from the podium. "You will have to  _really_ know what you are talking about to answer any of the questions on my tests. Not just restate the text book."

From behind her, Regina could hear some students shuffling uncomfortably in their seats and whispering amongst each other. Having shared most of her classes with those same classmates, she could tell they were expecting just to have to memorize the course material the night before the evaluation.

"How exactly is that going to benefit any of you with the real world just right around the corner?" Dr. Swan said, using hand air quotations just like Regina's roommate Kathryn to emphasize the real world in her speech.

It made her giggle, and so did the rest of the class.

_I don't think the real world has hit any of us yet Dr. Swan…_

"I bet you all think it's a long ways away that you'll ever need to get a job, am I right?" She asked, pausing to look around the class from her place. Quickly, Regina peered over her shoulder to see some guilty faces not daring to look their professor in the eye.

_Right again Professor Swan._

"Of course I'm right!" Dr. Swan said, laughing, and Regina felt her shoulders lose a bit of tension in the blade and relax.

"I'm not here to call everyone in this class out, or single out a student for trying to take the easy way out." Dr. Swan said. "I was just like all of you once, I know how scary life after this will be, but guess what? It doesn't have to be."

Coming off the podium, she walked around the class and pointed at the white board.

"You all know the basics, now it is time you learn how to apply them properly." Capping the felt marker, she now stood in front of the first row facing the class and directly facing Regina who sat in the seat where she stood. Dr. Swan took a peek at the clock hanging on the wall.

The class went by at a much faster pace than anyone could have anticipated, for a knock outside the lecture hall's heavy door said that Dr. Swan was going overtime. It was nice, no one noticing the time ticking away, or reaching for his or her cell phones every few minutes to check the time. Dr. Swan had an ability to engage everyone in the room, and all fifty-something students hung on every word she said, which was strange for a class on their first day back.

"It seems I have kept you guys here long enough on the first day, so grab some coffee everyone and see you Wednesday morning!" She finished, letting everyone pack his or her bags and begin to file out. After the hour and twenty minute lecture, and just as she had predicted, Regina could already tell she was going to enjoy the class.

When she finally got the chance to look at her phone, Regina saw that Kathryn had texted her about five minutes ago.

_Meet me at the Café in the engineering building – Rick's buying._

Regina would not normally take the extra five-minute walk to that building, but a free coffee was always welcome in the morning.

Especially with Kathryn's boyfriend Frederick footing the bill.

Regina texted back:  _Ok – be there in a few._

She put her notebook back into her bag and then slung it around her left shoulder. Her phone vibrated against the desk before she could even pick it up.

_Man this line is crazy, hurry up! We are behind like twenty people._

The university did not seem to understand that they needed to put more than one coffee shop on either end of the campus. With thousands of students filing in and out of its doors, the amount of caffeine being required by each exhausted body exponentially increased through the semester.

Regina knew this could be demonstrated by the amount of empty coffee cups and paper mugs that flooded recycling bins and garbage cans around the library during midterms and finals.

The fact that the line for a warm, caffeinated beverage on the science end of campus was already as long as Kathryn had warned her only made her laugh irritatingly. Perhaps she and Kathryn would be only brewing from home this year.

As predicted, the line at the coffee shop on that end of campus was virtually out the door by the time Regina had finally arrived. She walked as fast as she could, but apparently so had everyone else.

Including Dr. Swan who stood to her left outside the building, staring blankly at the lengthy line.

Emma shut off her laptop once she was done her lecture and watched all of her students file out of the lecture hall. She was pleased with herself, and thought the first class had gone relatively well.

Although she knew she presented herself as being a fair bit more approachable than most professors, she also knew that she had scared the living shit out of most of the students into dropping the class the minute they could get a hold of registration. Emma hated how so many of her fellow colleagues only concentrated on the factual knowledge and memorizing concepts. It's great having the students know exactly what all basic twenty amino acids look like structure-wise, but did they know any else about how they are used and applied?

Unfortunately, that was never the case.

This summer not only proved that the students were not only well under-equipped but actually very unaware and uncertain when it came to knowing the application of all their data being collected.

Scanning the room during her lecture, Emma could already tell that some of the young adults would be well-adjusted enough to work in the Molecular Labs over the summer, and possibly even sooner than that.

Only time would truly be able to tell.

As fast as her laptop case would allow her, Emma took her mug and brought it with her for a walk to the engineering building that was close by. The brew that morning for her and Tink's coffee had used up the last of her beans, and unfortunately Emma knew that a long morning and afternoon in the lab would require more than just some water to keep her awake.

Having only about fifteen minutes until she was expected to meet her teaching assistants and lab technicians, Emma stalked quickly and turned the usual five-minute walk to about three minutes. Unfortunately, even with her speed and determination, the line up for the Café was unsurprisingly out of the main door.

_Ah Fuck._

_Great._

Emma was about to go in line when she recognized one of the students to her right.

_Oh yeah, wasn't she the one that was late?_

The small brunette shyly smiled at her and Emma shot a grin back at the girl.

"Oh it's you again sleepy head!" Emma teased endearingly, not meaning to be cruel. "I'm guessing you didn't have time for coffee this morning?" Emma asked the blushing young woman, knowing the girl must have  _really_  slept in by her reaction.

She shook her head gently, smiling still. "None at all."

"Well it doesn't look like you'll be getting your fix any time soon." Emma told her, sighing in annoyance.

"They really should just invest in another shop to avoid all this nonsense." The brunette murmured, and Emma could not help but agree and make a suggestion.

"Or what they could do is make a staff only line. " Emma said, still staring at the growing line beside her student. "That would work too."

The young woman shot her a look behind her thinly framed glasses, with two very dark eyes flashing amusement at the suggestion. "How exactly would that help me and  _my_  coffee situation exactly Dr. Swan?"

Emma shrugged. "It wouldn't. But it would help me a lot."

They both stared at each other and then laughed. Suddenly, at the packed door, a young woman with pink streaks in her blonde hair appeared in the crowded doorway, waving to the brunette beside Emma it seemed.

"Regina!" She shouted, her hands ushering her inside. "Come on! Rick's almost at the front of the line!"

_Oh right, she told me her name was Regina already,_ Emma thought to herself, now imprinting her student's name in her brain for future reference.  _Regina Miller, or something. I'll check my list tonight._

The girl began to rush towards her friend at the front of the line before turning back in Emma's direction.

"Professor Swan, I know you must be in a rush –" She began, obviously a little shy still. " – But you could join us in line if you wanted to get your coffee quick?"

Emma was grateful. "Oh that would be great, thanks for asking." She replied, following the two students inside.

Before heading inside she turned to face the brunette. "By the way, call me Emma from now on. Dammit, I totally forgot to tell everyone in class that."

Regina laughed at her cursing. "Alright,  _Emma._ "

Regina and Emma followed the other woman with really cool pinkish hair into the building and all the way to the front of the line where she assumed one of their boyfriend's was waiting.

Just as expected, the young lanky guy put his arm around the blonde girl and Regina turned back to Emma.

"Go ahead of us Dr. Swan, er - Emma." She suggested politely, and then turned back to chat amicably with her friend.

"Oh, uh, thanks a lot." Emma smiled curtly. After ordering her coffee, she thanked her student once again before rushing out of the building. Before leaving, she turned back and saw the young girl named Regina staring at her in the doorway, then turn around blushing, knowing she had been seen staring.

Emma chuckled.  _She knows that being so shy is not always a bad thing, right?_

At least this girl wasn't like the majority of people in Emma's Molecular Biology class. Most of them had their heads so far up their own asses they think they are better than everyone else.

Regina watched Dr. Swan leave the building, her light brown hair in its bun almost falling out of place with each quick stride.

"Which class does she teach Regina?" Frederick asked, breaking Regina's stare from the lineup through the entrance. "She's a cutie."

"Dr. Swan teaches Molecular Biology now." Regina exclaimed a little too excitedly, ignoring Rick's further comment and this did not go unnoticed by either Rick or Kathryn.

The barista interrupted their conversation, waiting for an order. Frederick ordered coffee for all three of them, leaving Kathryn and Regina to got and find an available table. By the window, a table for three had been left untouched, and Regina and Kathryn ran quickly to grab it.

"Well isn't that a good start to your first day?" Kathryn mused, setting her bag down on the ground in the same motion as Regina before taking a seat. "No more old Dr. Banks."

"Trust me, I could not be more thrilled." Regina replied exhaustively.

"At least she looks kind of young, you know?" Kathryn said. "This way she can relate to you guys."

"Her outline does not look easy though." Regina said. "She practically scared away half the class today when she said the tests and exams would be based on methods used, not memorization."

"Oh right, because all you biology majors do is read and regurgitate." Kathryn teased.

"Fine Kathryn, I suppose you can use that as an accurate stereotype for biology majors." Regina replied, rolling her eyes. "But I guess all you chemistry majors do is draw hexagons and play with Lego."

"Those are molecular models used to build molecules and you know it!"

"Just like Lego in theory –" Regina mocked.

" _Har-har_  Regina." Kathryn sarcastically replied.

"I'm only joking."

"Regina Mills, joking?" Kathryn said provokingly. "That would be the day."

"Well I can only torment you about Chemistry because I barely understood the majority of second year Organic Chemistry,"

"It was a bitch for all of us."

"I'd say." Regina mused, taking the cup Frederick handed her once he reached the table.

He handed Kathryn her coffee and then took a seat beside his girlfriend, wrapping an arm around her. "What are you two ladies gossiping about?"

"School, what else?" Kathryn informed him, laughing when he wrinkle his nose in disgust.

"Gross." He retorted, miming vomiting into his coffee, which his girlfriend Kathryn found hilarious.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Really? Feigning nausea this early Frederick?"

"Hey, I had a late night last night." He replied, downing his coffee at record speed and causing Kathryn to grab the mug out of his hands before he could  _drown_ himself in the boiling beverage.

"Stop it!" She scolded, putting the paper mug down on the table in front of them. "I bought you that shirt, and I don't plan on being the one to scrub the coffee stains out of it!"

Regina could not help but laugh as she watched Rick use his puppy dog eyes on Kathryn, and her best friend shove the hot drink back in his direction on the table.

"Try and drink it slowly this time, why don't you?" Kathryn proposed with warning.

He agreed without further comment.

"So wait." Regina interrupted. "I forgot to ask how the engineering frosh week went. How did it go Frederick?"

Every year, the frosh week, or freshman introduction week as properly penned, for engineers always caused the most hassle with the university. The week before classes start, all the new students piled into their dorms and met all their fellow classmates and others who lived with them in their dorm building. The week basically consisted of intense challenges and excessive amounts of alcohol. It went pretty much that way for all faculties during frosh week, but the engineers took it the most seriously. Regina remembered Cora's eyes practically bulging out of their sockets yesterday when she saw a group of them run by her apartment complex in their underpants, with their skin dyed green.

Regina guessed that seeing Kathryn's odd choice of hair colour might have just  _added_ to the horror.

It all truly lightened Regina's mood overall.

"Amazing, as per usual." Rick replied proudly. "So messy though."

"I expected nothing less to be honest." Regina muttered.

"The faculty has asked us to refrain from using colour dye in the future though."

"Do I even want to know why?" Regina asked.

"Apparently one kid was allergic and ended up having to drop out of this semester." Kathryn answered, shooting a harsh look at her boyfriend.

"Speaking of this semester, Regina do you happen to have any plans for this Friday evening?" Frederick turned to her, questioning her with oddly inquisitive eyes.

"Not that I know of, why?"

"Well I have this friend –"

"Absolutely not Frederick." Regina finished for him. "Nice try though."

"Regina, it would be a good double date!"

"No."

"He's really smart and has taken quite a shine to you –"

" – And what do you  _not_ understand about no?" Regina asked, growing irritated.

"Are you seriously trying to set my best friend up asshole?" Kathryn gritted through her teeth, smacking her boyfriend on the arm.

"Hey!" He yelped reflexively, and Regina knew how hard Kathryn could punch. "I just wanted to introduce her to this guy I just met in Pre-Med. It would be a nice double date I thought."

"Pre-Med?" Kathryn asked. "So he's basically a pretentious prick?"

"Not all guys in that program are jerks Kat."

"Most of them are." Regina alleged to Rick. "But my mother would be ever so  _thrilled_ to hear that I went on a date with a potential doctor the first week I got back here."

"Is that a yes then Gina?" Frederick asked her, clearly hoping she would agree.

"Seriously Regina, just because you're single doesn't mean you need to feel obligated to go." Kathryn voiced, but the whole "single" dig hurt Regina a lot more than she expected.

It wasn't that Regina wanted to be alone at this point in her life, because that certainly was not the reason for her being presently single at all. After many years of living a very privileged, but extremely sheltered life, Regina just never considered herself open to meeting someone she would wish to have an intimate relationship with. She really wanted to go with her only friend in school, Rachel, to prom (not that she would have ever dared ask a woman in Cora's presence), but much to her luck, mother had set Regina up with one of her wealthy friend's sons. The entire night went epically horrible. Her prom date had forced a few drunken kisses onto her unwilling lips and practically tried to rip her dress off. She went home early and tried not to show her father how much she had been crying. Luckily, the drunken idiot boy had not succeeded in harming her further, but the evening haunted her.

She turned down many offers as they came first and second year, wanting to only focus on her studies and furthering her potential in her field. Now, being one of the top students in her year, and relatively stable as per focus, she took this proposal Frederick presented with a grain of salt.

She really hated the idea, but did not want to be the single friend anymore.

"What have I told you about calling me Gina, Frederick?" Regina groaned. "You know how much I hate that name."

"Kathryn calls you that all the time!" He retaliated with. "I can never win with either of you, can I?"

"Get used to it Rick." Kathryn mused.

"By the way." Regina articulated. "Yes."

"Really?" Rick responded ecstatically. "He is going to be so stoked! He's had his eye on you since first year Regina!"

"Oh, well now this date just sounds all the more fun." Regina declared sarcastically.

Kathryn gave her a small smile; she was evidently  _thrilled_  to see her friend taking such a chance.

Little did she know how much Regina was already deeply  _dreading_  Friday night.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

Come the early hours of Wednesday morning, neither the young third year student or the Molecular Biology professor had gotten enough sleep for that day's lecture. You can be entirely sure that they both cursed the faculty and the university for the eight-thirty start time. As it happened, most science lectures were strategically scheduled early in the morning to make way for daily laboratory sessions and office hours. No, this still didn't make any sense to the paying approximately five thousand students and over hundred members of the faculty, but like they even had a choice. As students sluggishly crawled out of bed or angrily reached for their alarm clock to throw against the wall, the campus began to rise with the sun.

_More like with loads of caffeine._

Dr. Swan couldn't have had a more impossible morning as she had managed to not only short fuse her coffee machine, but almost disarm her condo of all power. That being said, she wasn't all too surprised with her handy skills. She once did try to dissect her toaster whilst attempting to finish her thesis for her Master's. To this day, her colleague Ruby kept it in her office at the History department, sometimes showing her students the products of what happens when you rush to finish your final papers in a crunch.

_"It's practically a historical artifact that represents procrastination." She explained ever-so-intently over a bottle of chardonnay. "It could be a relic of use to our next generation one day."_

_"That fucking machine-" Emma pointed at it as she saw it on display the day before, " – stole my multigrain!"_

Although it wasn't very funny for Emma at the time of being a starving student with no chance or time to invest in another toaster, now the girls can laugh about it over one or more bottles of unoaked chardonnay.

Deciding to bypass her office to make a morning brew, coming to the conclusion that she should probably stay away from all machinery until at least 10 o'clock, she made the ultimate decision to head to the café and opt for a hot cocoa instead. Wednesday seemed like the perfect day to treat herself, as after all, it was  _hump_  day. Her old project supervisor used to always bring in hot chocolate every Wednesday and Emma quite enjoyed the tradition.

Maybe for these morning classes, she would add a shot or two of espresso to its sweet goodness. Deciding to sport a lavender blouse and khaki dress pants, Emma inspected her outfit for lint and hair for fly-aways in the mirror by her exit before locking up and officially starting her day. Avoiding breaking another appliance was practically age-appropriate, and she knew Tink would get a laugh about it at lunch break.

7:49

Regina woke up early that morning having not slept as much as she would have liked to. In fact, she woke up face-first in her Chapter 4: Translation notes, and a few telling dark blue pen marks staining her face with assorted words and formulas. She had managed to scrub off most of the obvious and literal handiwork, not being able to get rid "ribosomal RNA" inscribed into her left cheek fully.

Her roommate, and best audience it seems, was absolutely zero help in trying to get rid of the penmanship.

"Have you tried makeup remover?" Kat asked, giggling while she inspected it with no intentions of actually helping.

"No luck at all." Regina groaned. "It's not too noticeable, is it?"

"Not for anyone with your eyesight that's for sure."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks Kat."

Pink-blonde hair flipped over the other girl's shoulder. "Anytime."

"Whatever." Regina exhaled, already tying her curls half up and leaving the rest down. Grabbing her lens case, she took the cloth and began to clean her glasses before shooting a glance back at her best friend. "I'm grabbing a coffee before class at the café, you want one?"

"I'm good, Rick's coming by for some pre-class kisses and I made him promise to bring me a pick-me-up."

Regina smirked. "Doesn't Frederick have enough energy to pretty much replace the solar energy plant in the physics department?"

"RIGHT?" Kathryn added with outright vindication. "This is why he needs to do so many sports. Apparently his fencing class is what he enjoys the most though."

"Ah, see? Chivalry will never be dead my dear." Regina remarked with a dramatic flair. Both young women laughed before the brunette grabbed her bag and headed out of their apartment. Slipping on her blue, comfy shoes, she quickly yanked her lab coat off one the their coat hangers in the closet.

"Don't forget!" Regina yelled for her roommate before she left. "We have the Genetics lab orientation today, and Dr. MacMillan wants us to wear our whites."

8:07

She wasn't too sure whether it was just her overall desire to perform and impress, or maybe the intrigue and intimidation Dr. Emma Swan exuded, but Regina Mills was certainly not going to be late for her second Molecular Biology lecture today. In fact, the reason she had woken up with the rather unfortunate way that morning was entirely due to the fact that she had spent the majority of the night studying the next four chapters for her class. Not only did she want to have a full grip on the material needed that today's lecture, she wanted to be able to answer every and any question Dr. Swan posed.

She had no shame in doing a little bit of digging when it came to their young, new and mysteriously  _cool_  professor. Some serious Google searching and archive maneuvering had flung Regina into the world of Emma Swan, PhD who was not only locally recognized in their school's faculty, but had a pretty wicked stack of publications. She was someone who interested Regina, and someone Regina could admire for tackling the sciences as not only a woman, but an incredibly brilliant woman.

Overall, it took a lot to impress young Regina Mills, but Dr. Swan had officially earned that right in spades.

In turn, Regina decided to do everything she could to show Professor Swan that she was not only a hard worker, but equipped for the class and could potentially be a very good student candidate for the research thesis in her upcoming last year. Every student wishing to do a thesis project required approval from a professor, and would need to do her project in pertaining to the research focused on by the professor. What Dr. Swan was working on in her lab really interested Regina, so now it was up to her to prove her worth in every paper and test.

_And every class._

Even if it meant staying up 'til the wee hours of Wednesday morning and falling asleep on her own notes.

_Totally worth it._

This early meant that the coffee line wouldn't be too bad, because with their program being arguably one of the most challenging, the engineering students didn't bother grabbing their hot brew until fifteen to even ten minutes before class. That gave the young biologist a chance to get her hot fix and make it to class earlier than last time. Regina hated being tardy, and she had no intention of reliving the embarrassment of her first day of third year once more. The brunette stood in line, intensely scanning over her notes on the translational period in DNA synthesis and waited for her turn. When the barista shouted, "White Hot Chocolate with double shot of espresso", Regina winced.

_A drink that sugary this early? Someone must have quite the sweet tooth._

Her mother hadn't allowed her much sugar growing up, as Cora always feared it would affect her daughter's health and weight for the woman she had practically willed Regina to become. Her treat however was a hot cup of cider every fall at thanksgiving that she made with her grandfather.

She glanced up when she heard a familiar voice a couple people ahead of her.

"That's mine thanks."

It was none other than Dr. Swan who Regina watched grab the steaming hot cup of pure liquid caffeinated sugar. She smiled at the barista before heading towards the milks table and totally ignored them, instead grabbed a shaker and added a couple dashes of cinnamon on top of her hot cup.

If the woman wasn't fascinating before, now she was purely odd in a rather charming way.

_She's a scientist and a professor,_  Regina remarked to herself with an internal smirk.  _How boring and predictable would she be without a couple of odd quirks?_

"NEXT!"

She was so intently watching Dr. Swan that she hadn't even noticed it was her own turn to order. Shaken from her thoughts, she ordered an Americano. She did so quickly, and made her way quickly to class in order make sure she got her seat in the front row of BIO310.

 


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

 

After her initial morning freshener of an all-too delectable sweetness to get her through her first early class, she feels that familiar huge and weight-bearing burden of a caffeine crash suddenly coming practically on schedule. Ruby has tried aimlessly to counsel her into changing her choice of ‘treat yourself’ into an espresso or a chai on these mornings, but Emma certainly isn’t interested. If anything can convince her mind to wake up for the day and get going, it was a steaming cup of hot cocoa with a dash of cinnamon. She did however tell Ruby she compromised, with a shot or two of espresso, depending on the type of morning she thought she was going to have. She should however have planned for this crash a little better, she mulled over in her mind as she stalked to her office.

Today would prove to be a long and tiring day, no matter how she kept trying to change it otherwise in her head. After starting a new project with the university, they implored her to choose her research associates and assistants wisely. Nearly twenty resumes currently situated themselves scattered all over dark oak desk that seemed so out of place in this brand new clinical science building. Nonetheless, Emma was not about to start complaining about the décor as she was on the highest track of her colleagues towards tenure. Her fellowship supervisor may or may not have alluded to this fantastic news recently over a tumbler or two of overcompensating whiskeys, and Emma has been carefully treading ever since. Dr. Lucas, or Granny as she calls her, being Ruby’s grandmother and all – hadn’t mentioned anything since, although Emma pretended she never heard anything of the sort.

The funding was finally secured for the upcoming three years that the project would take if all went well, and she could initially hire three research assistants and one associate. Luckily, she already had her associate lined up for the job. The associate was ideally meant to be in their later studies, and a young woman whom Emma has co-authored her last three publications with thankfully applied.

Elsa planned on doing her PhD in the same study area as Emma had done, and the two got along splendidly. Other than trying to convince Emma that she should join their ice hockey league, Emma knew this partnership would be a great one for her project. Also, since she would most certainly have to hire younger, more juniour students to be assistants, it would be nice to have someone who already knew how to cite scientific papers properly, considering this happened to be Emma’s least favourite task when it came down to the nitty gritty of publications.

Well that, and the huge expense it actually takes to pay for them to print your findings.

She also thought it would be best for Elsa to help with the interviews, and maybe even sit in on a couple of them if she was available. They were all going to be a team, and preferably would have to act like one. So while Emma waited until 12:15 for her first candidate, she messaged Tink a quick little recap and then made a massive pot of coffee. Her head pounded as the daylight poured into her office, and she took her hair out of its tight confines to shake it loose for a moment, while leaning lazily back in her chair. She could feel herself fading away even in this uncomfortable state, until she was startled out of her seat. Elsa had arrived right on schedule to Emma’s office by making her presence known with a light knock. Delicate, and nearly impossible to hear in an airy sort of way, her knock resembled so much like the woman whom it belonged to. As she saw Emma’s clumsly reaction, Elsa glided in and apologized repeatedly.

“Sorry Dr. Swan, didn’t mean to –“

“Elsa, please, first things first,” Emma said hastily. “It’s Emma - that whole Dr. Swan thing sounds so weird even now.”

Elsa blushed a pretty pink that was very visible against the stark parlour of her ashen hair. “Alright then, Emma it will be. Are we interviewing many candidates today or just the one you sent me earlier?”

Her voice sounded uneasy, and even a little, was it - annoyed?

“Yeah just him today Elsa.” Emma began, her eyes narrowing but holding a tinge of amusement. “Did you happen to have your own vault of candidates instead?”

Elsa shook her head, staring outside in a weird fixated look. “No, I just happen to know him.”

Emma’s brow rose considerably. “Oh? Like, you know him know him?”

This didn’t bother Emma, but it did puzzle her. She was fairly good at reading people, and this young guy didn’t seem like Elsa’s type – too young and too male from what she gathered.

Elsa shot her a look. “Not on my part that’s for sure. My sister dated him for a bit, and let’s just say it didn’t end well after he hit on me at our cousin’s wedding in the spring.”

“Poor Anna.” That was her name, right?

“She’s much better off.” Elsa said finally, looking to change the subject back to a professional tone after divulging some deeply personal news about this Hans guy whose application was looking less attractive than it already was. Him, being a board member’s son, got him an interview sure, but that’s where the nepotism died. Emma firmly believed in hard work, as her years of school taught her so much about just that. She came from none of that nonsense, and wasn’t interested in students trying to buy their degree. Having worked two jobs, countless scholarships and then some to pay for her degree and rent, Emma would never be able to understand the luxury of the upper class – and for that matter, she did not want to.

“Go home Els, I’ll save you the awkward run-in.” Emma told her with a smirk. One look at his GPA told Emma he also was not a fit for this project anyways, and she sure as hell was not going to make her associate uncomfortable. She did, however, interview him, and he proved to be charming alright, but a lot more interested in the benefits of a publication or two on his resume than the actual work itself.

Back to the drawing board, Emma thought as she smiled politely at Hans as he left her office, feeling overly confident in his interview from what she could tell.

An idea sprung in her mind immediately reminding her of her own undergraduate degree. This one professor had taken a chance on a young, bright and eager student, who never missed a class and may have been a little bit like a fish out of water. This student did rise to the challenge of a project, and even continued it on throughout her Master’s Degree.

That student was Dr. Swan, whose idea suddenly seemed to make more and more sense as she poured herself a cup of coffee and sat herself at her desktop with one purpose set in mind.

¬¬¬  
Regina couldn’t be more thankful for having Kathryn as an amazing roommate than in this moment, as she twirled her spaghetti noodles with precise training of someone who clearly had etiquette classes thrust on them young.

She came home that evening to a lovely handwritten note from the blonde saying she made some spaghetti for her Gorgeous Bestie who needed better eating habits and study fuel. The smiley face that followed the note screamed Kathryn, which made Regina smile and chuckle.

I guess Frederick and her finally learned something in those Italian cooking lessons.

Surprisingly savoury and appetizingly filling, Regina sat contently at the dining table in their small space alone, breathing deeply and relaxing from her exhausting day. An unwanted and unnecessary long phone call with her mother at lunch time greatly soured her mood for the entire afternoon, and her Organic Chemistry II professor already assigned them two chapters of reading due next class.

A class that was tomorrow morning in fact, much to the dismay of Regina’s sleep schedule. She pulled out her book, readying herself for a long night once more.

Before she had even the chance to forget, she reached into her bag and grabbed her phone, meaning to text her roommate a very very grateful thank you.

Her email inbox had one unread message, from none other than the woman who had become quite a fixture in her mind, and laptop’s search history.

**From: Dr. Emma Swan**

**Hi students,**

**As of today, I’ve decided to open up applications for three spots as a Research Assistant I on my team.**

**I think it would greatly benefit and introduce these three students (Undergrad or Master’s) who may have an interest in my realm of research. I have attached the PDF files of the requirements, and background on the studies we as a team will be (hopefully!) completing.**

**If any of you are interested, please send me your full resume and two references along with a convincing but short cover letter telling me a bit about yourself. I’m very eager to have some fresh insight on my team, and maybe teach you a couple of cool quantitative and qualitative methods!**

**See you all later this week.**   
**Regards,**

**Emma**


End file.
